Edgar Allan Poe self-published his first book, Tamerlane and Other Poems, in 1827. His second poetry collection, Al Aaraaf, Tamerlane, and Minor Poems, was published in 1829. As a critic at the Southern Literary Messenger in Richmond from 1835 to 1837, Poe published some of his own works in the magazine, including two parts of his only novel, The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym. Israfel is a lyrical poem of eight uneven stanzas, each stanza ranging from five to eight lines in length. The title is the name of an angel mentioned in the Koran, the sacred book of the Muslims. Edgar Allan Poe appended a note to this poem to make sure that his readers understood Israfel’s significance; the note read: “And the angel Israfel, whose heart-strings are a lute, and who has the sweetest voice of all God’s creatures - Koran.” Israfel’s importance as a singer or artist is central to the poem, and Poe’s consideration hereof creativity reflects a typical concern of other Romantic poets such as George Gordon, Lord Byron, Percy Bysshe Shelley, and John Keats. The poem is written in the first person from the point of view of someone who is also a singer or creator of some sort, but readers do not discover this important information until the last stanza of the poem. Enjoy free online English audiobook “Israfel”, a breathtaking poem by Edgar Allan Poe.
